Afrocentric Mentoring: Alleviating the Challenges of Institutional Racism African American Female Graduate Students Encounter at Predominantly White Institutions

Purpose and Method of Study: The purpose of this qualitative transcendental (descriptive) phenomenological study was to investigate and document the lived experiences of African American (AA) female graduate students utilizing Afrocentric mentoring paradigms at PWIs. I examined the challenges caused by institutional racism in PWIs and whether Afrocentric mentoring paradigms alleviated these challenges. This study's focus was the phenomenon of Afrocentric mentoring at PWIs and how to give meaning to those experiences (Creswell & Poth, 2018). I employed the critical theories of CRT (Bell, 1995; Crenshaw et al., 1995) and BFT (Bertrand Jones et al., 2013; Collins, 1990) in this qualitative phenomenological study. Findings and Conclusions: Four themes emerged from the data analysis of the mentoring experiences of AA female graduate students attending PWIs, indicating that participants: (a) experienced the challenges of institutional racism; (b) experienced feelings of pride, empowerment, validation, and affirmation; (c) experienced faith, unity, self-determination, purpose, empowerment, and a sense of belonging and community; and (d) experienced positive relationships with their AA mentors. The participants experienced microaggressive behavior, outsider-within-status, lack of support, and attacks on their personal beauty. Through the mentoring process these AA female graduate students experienced pride, self-determination, empowerment, and a sense of belonging within a community. All participants described the experience of having a mentor who looked like them. Additionally, research has shown that AA students at PWIs benefit from having AA mentors, yet due to the limited number of qualified AA faculty members having an AA mentor is not always possible. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]